Advanced Organizer

To start the student's thinking about today's lesson, I will have them read two Point of View-Advanced Organizer. Each story is about the same event. I will have them read the story and then answer the questions. I debated on whether or not to tell the students that the stories are about the same event. I think I will NOT tell them and see if they can make that connection. This will prepare the students for the concept of point of view and perspective. It will pull up an prior knowledge the students have, making today's connection more meaningful and concrete.

I will give the students time to complete the Advanced Organizer. They will read silently on their own and answer the questions. Once they are done, I will ask the students what they noticed about the two stories. This will hopefully elicit responses about point of view. I can then use this to activate their prior knowledge on point of view. I will ask them what they know about point of view.

In this part of the lesson, I always refer back up to the essential question, which I write on the board every day. The essential question drives us throughout our lesson. It tells us where we are headed. Having an essential question gives the students a vision of what we are learning. Our essential question for today is "How do author's develop point of view and how do they determine what point of view to use for their purpose?"

We are ready to move on to the lesson.

Point of View-Advanced Organizer

Advanced Organizer

Student Working on Advanced Organizer

Student Sample

Instruction

15 minutes

To continue to close the gaps that the transition to Common Core has caused, I will start the lesson by reviewing the types of point of view. With the transition, the students are still learning the different types of point of view, rather than analyzing for it. The students have all been exposed to point of view in the past, so this should just be a refresher.

I will pass out the Guided Notes Handout and display the Point of View Power Point. I will remind the students that the purpose of guided notes is to help them understand what is important to write down while taking notes and to assist them on focusing on what is being taught. The 6th graders are struggling with processing the notes as they take them, so we are finding success with using guided notes. As they write the few key details, we are able to engage them more in the discussions had during note taking. This allows the students time to process the information and ask questions if needed. Just having the students take down all the notes, they were just writing and not thinking about what they were writing down. We want them to develop the skill of actively thinking about the notes as they write! This will aid in comprehension and understanding.

As I go through the notes on the Power Point, the students complete the guided notes page. This notes page can and will be used as a resource in later lessons. I will have the students tape the notes page into their interactive spirals onto the next blank page. This will ensure they have it for later use and reference.

Next, to ensure processing of the notes, I will pass out the notes foldable. I will have the students take the definitions and rewrite them in their own words. This will help the students to gain an understanding for the definitions. I will also have the students write the "signal" words for each type of point of view onto the foldable. This will be used as a resource and quick reference in our guided practice activity. I will have the students tape this foldable into their spirals to prepare for the guided practice.

Guided Notes

Point of View Power Point

foldable

Independent Practice

Once the students have had the opportunity to practice analyzing text for point of view, I will have them work independently to analyze two texts. The text is about the same event, just told from different perspectives. This will allow the students to see how author's develop point of view as well as how the point of view can affect the plot of the story. It allows the students to think about why author's may decide to write in the point of view they wrote in.

I will ask the students if they have ever been a spectator at a game? I will ask them to describe what they saw and how they felt. Next, I will ask the students to think about the athlete at the game, asking how they believe that athlete felt while playing and what they saw. How are these experiences different? How would the story be different if told from different accounts?

I would allow the students a chance to share. The purpose of this is to allow the students a chance to set their brains up for the reading. They know they will be looking at two different accounts of the same story. I want them to be looking for similarities and differences in the story. This will allow them to later identify why an author may have decided to write using one perspective over the other or when an author may decide to write from one of the perspectives.

Once the students have finished, I will have partners share their work with each other and discuss their thoughts.

Independent Work Story

Independent Story 2

partners share

Guided Practice

10 minutes

The students are all experts on point of view, right? Well, we will see! In this activity I am going to have the students use their knowledge, as well as the notes we took to identify the point of view being presented in the text.

For this activity, to get the students applying the skill on analyzing text, I do an activity titled "Showdown". In this activity, students work with their shoulder partner to read, discuss, and analyze text for point of view. I have the students work with their shoulder partner because they are grouped by ability. One student in the pair is a higher performing student. This creates a model for the struggling student. It also provides support for the struggling student. They are able to witness how the stronger student thinks and perseveres through a difficult problem.

I have chosen to do "Showdown" because this lesson is scaffolding a more difficult lesson on author's perspective with informational text, and the students have some knowledge and skill level with point of view. Showdown is a fun way to engage the students when reviewing a concept.

During "Showdown" each pair will get one white board, one dry erase maker, and one eraser. I display the problem, force the students to take 10-15 seconds of think time before discussing with their partner. I do this because they often times will rush to answer and not process the entire question. This also allows for the struggling student in the pair a chance to process and recall. If the stronger student answers first every time, it's not going to be a beneficial activity for the struggling student.

Once I have given them think time, I model how they discuss to their partners. I demonstrate and even give them the prompt to say. I do this because conversation skills and the Socratic style of discussing is not something they have practiced or had much exposure to in the classroom. This gives them a model for what is expected. For today's prompt, I will say "I believe the point of view to be _____________ because ______________."

Then, the opposite partner must respond with "I agree with what you said because_________" or " I disagree with what you said because____________."

I have them practice this step.

Finally, I have the students write down their responses onto the white board. Once I yell "Showdown" they all hold their boards up high. This gives me a quick, very visual assessment of student understanding. At this point, I can re-teach, clarify, or continue.

Before letting them go, I will project the first slide onto the screen and read it aloud. I will have the students answer the questions for the slide:

"Who is telling the story?"

"Is the narrator a character in the story?"

These questions will help the students identify point of view. If the narrator is not a character in the story, it cannot be first person. Next, I will ask the students to identify the signal words used in the passage and then remind them that each point of view will use distinct signal words. I will remind the students to refer to their notes and foldable for each picture. I will leave the two questions on the board and have the students write the questions onto their papers. They will answer the two questions for each slide. I will model my expectations of behavior, team work, and practices before letting them work. It is important for the students to know exactly what they are to do and what is expected. I like to model what IS expected for every activity. The more I pre-teach expectations the less confusion and misunderstandings I have. It has been very successful this year.

If only a few students are still struggling, I will work with a small group to re-teach and provide more guidance with the activity.

Guided Practice POV Lesson

Showdown!

Closure

7 minutes

To provide closure to today's lesson and bring a sense of completion to our learning, I will have the students pick up our closure slip. This will review the objective of the day but also allow the students to express concerns with the lesson. I changed my closure because I felt like I wasn't getting enough out of the students or allowing them that time to truly reflect. I am going to try and see if the new method works. I am beginning to see the true value in reflecting and giving the students that opportunity to reflect on their own learning will hopefully be just as powerful as it has been for me.

One piece I will add to the closure slip is a place for students to express concern with the lesson, areas they still feel weak with understanding or applying. I will also give the students a place to share success. I will continuously evolve the slips to meet the daily objectives as well as the student's needs.

Pass out the Closure Slips for today and have the students work quietly to complete it. They can turn them into the tray. These should be used as quick, informal assessments for planning towards future lessons. I will use them to assess and plan.